1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to card games, and, more particularly, to a system and method of playing a card game in which an original hand is evaluated as a composite of multiple hands.
2. Description of the Related Art
Most card games typically involve dealing each player an original hand of cards. This original hand is evaluated in accordance with game rules in which all of the cards are considered together as a single hand.
For example, in a basic poker game, which is played with a standard 52-card deck, each player is dealt five cards. All five cards in each player""s hand are evaluated as a single hand for the presence of various combinations of the cards, such as pairs, three-of-a-kind, straights, etc. Determining which combinations prevail over other combinations is done by reference to a table containing a ranking of the combinations. The rankings in most tables are based on the odds of each combination occurring in the player""s hand. Regardless of the number of cards in a player""s hand, the values assigned to the cards, and the odds, the method of evaluating all five cards in a player""s hand remains the same.
A modified poker card game is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,882,260 where each player has more than five cards in a hand. Each player builds at least two five-card hands that are placed on a playing surface and joined by an intersecting card to define a pattern. This method has the disadvantage of requiring each player to be dealt at least 9 cards at a time. Because all cards are placed on the playing surface in a pattern, substantial space on the playing surface is required for each player.
The disclosed embodiments of the invention are directed to a system and method of card game play. In accordance with one method of card game play, five cards are dealt to a player. The five cards are evaluated as a five-card hand and in addition as a sub-combination hand of fewer cards than the five cards in accordance with the rules of play. For example, in a game of five-card draw poker, a hand of five cards is dealt to a player and the hand is evaluated as a five-card hand and in addition as at least a sub-combination hand of the at-least five cards, such as a three-card hand, a four-card hand, or both, or as two three-card hands, or as three three-card hands, all in accordance with the rules of play. Ideally the method of card game play is implemented electronically, such as on an electronic gaming machine, a portable handheld device, a stand-alone game machine, a personal computer, and other devices that are commercially available and as known to those skilled in the art.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the method of card game play includes dealing an initial five-card hand to the player, replacing any cards discarded by the player at the player""s option, and evaluating the hand as a five-card hand and, in addition, evaluating pre-determined three-card and four-card sub-combinations as three-card and four-card hands, respectively, in accordance with the rules of play. Alternatively, the hand of five cards can either be evaluated as two three-card hands, two four-card hands, or as three three-card hands. Moreover, the foregoing embodiment can involve initially dealing four cards to the player, in which case the hand would be evaluated as a four-card hand and as one or more three-card hands.
In accordance with another embodiment of the method of card game play, the method includes receiving at least five cards and evaluating the at least five cards as a five-card hand and evaluating sub-combination hands of the at least five cards to have less than the at least five cards, such as three-card hands, four-card hands, or as a combination of a two-card hand and a three-card hand, or as three three-card hands, or a three-card hand along with a four-card hand. As discussed above, this method of card game play can be implemented on a computer.
In accordance with yet another embodiment of the invention, a method of card game play is provided, the card game having rules of play associated with it. The method includes receiving a wager placed by a player; providing the player with at least five cards; receiving an additional wager at the player""s option; replacing cards selected by the player at the player""s option from the player""s hand; and evaluating the at least five cards as a single at least five-card hand and in addition evaluating the at least five cards as a sub-combination hand of fewer than the at least five cards, such as four cards or three cards. In one embodiment of the invention, the at least one sub-combination hand includes two sub-combination hands, each of which may be three cards or one of which is three cards and the other of which is four cards, or each of which is four cards. Other sub-combinations are also possible depending on the number of cards initially provided to the player.
In accordance with a system of the present invention, a computer is provided that is configured to deal at least five cards to a player and evaluate the at least five cards as a five-card hand and in addition as a sub-combination hand of cards, such as three cards and four cards, in accordance with rules of play that are stored on a storage device associated with the computer. Ideally the at least five cards are provided to the player on a display device, such as a monitor.
As will be appreciated from the foregoing, the embodiments of the invention enhance card game play by enabling play of three-card hands, four-card hands, or both, within and in addition to the five-card hand. This increases not only the player""s opportunity to place additional wagers and increase their winnings, it also provides increased income opportunities for the provider of the game.